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1 *usr_04.txt* For Vim version 7.3. Last change: 2008 Sep 06
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3 VIM USER MANUAL - by Bram Moolenaar
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4
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5 Making small changes
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6
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7
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8 This chapter shows you several ways of making corrections and moving text
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9 around. It teaches you the three basic ways to change text: operator-motion,
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10 Visual mode and text objects.
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11
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12 |04.1| Operators and motions
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13 |04.2| Changing text
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14 |04.3| Repeating a change
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15 |04.4| Visual mode
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16 |04.5| Moving text
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17 |04.6| Copying text
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18 |04.7| Using the clipboard
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19 |04.8| Text objects
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20 |04.9| Replace mode
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21 |04.10| Conclusion
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22
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23 Next chapter: |usr_05.txt| Set your settings
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24 Previous chapter: |usr_03.txt| Moving around
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25 Table of contents: |usr_toc.txt|
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26
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27 ==============================================================================
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28 *04.1* Operators and motions
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29
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30 In chapter 2 you learned the "x" command to delete a single character. And
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31 using a count: "4x" deletes four characters.
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32 The "dw" command deletes a word. You may recognize the "w" command as the
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33 move word command. In fact, the "d" command may be followed by any motion
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34 command, and it deletes from the current location to the place where the
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35 cursor winds up.
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36 The "4w" command, for example, moves the cursor over four words. The d4w
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37 command deletes four words.
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38
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39 To err is human. To really foul up you need a computer. ~
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40 ------------------>
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41 d4w
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42
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43 To err is human. you need a computer. ~
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44
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45 Vim only deletes up to the position where the motion takes the cursor. That's
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46 because Vim knows that you probably don't want to delete the first character
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47 of a word. If you use the "e" command to move to the end of a word, Vim
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48 guesses that you do want to include that last character:
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49
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50 To err is human. you need a computer. ~
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51 -------->
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52 d2e
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53
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54 To err is human. a computer. ~
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55
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56 Whether the character under the cursor is included depends on the command you
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57 used to move to that character. The reference manual calls this "exclusive"
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58 when the character isn't included and "inclusive" when it is.
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59
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60 The "$" command moves to the end of a line. The "d$" command deletes from the
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61 cursor to the end of the line. This is an inclusive motion, thus the last
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62 character of the line is included in the delete operation:
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63
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64 To err is human. a computer. ~
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65 ------------>
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66 d$
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67
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68 To err is human ~
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69
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70 There is a pattern here: operator-motion. You first type an operator command.
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71 For example, "d" is the delete operator. Then you type a motion command like
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72 "4l" or "w". This way you can operate on any text you can move over.
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73
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74 ==============================================================================
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75 *04.2* Changing text
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76
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77 Another operator is "c", change. It acts just like the "d" operator, except
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78 it leaves you in Insert mode. For example, "cw" changes a word. Or more
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79 specifically, it deletes a word and then puts you in Insert mode.
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80
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81 To err is human ~
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82 ------->
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83 c2wbe<Esc>
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84
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85 To be human ~
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86
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87 This "c2wbe<Esc>" contains these bits:
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88
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89 c the change operator
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90 2w move two words (they are deleted and Insert mode started)
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91 be insert this text
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92 <Esc> back to Normal mode
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93
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94 If you have paid attention, you will have noticed something strange: The space
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95 before "human" isn't deleted. There is a saying that for every problem there
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96 is an answer that is simple, clear, and wrong. That is the case with the
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97 example used here for the "cw" command. The c operator works just like the
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98 d operator, with one exception: "cw". It actually works like "ce", change to
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99 end of word. Thus the space after the word isn't included. This is an
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100 exception that dates back to the old Vi. Since many people are used to it
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101 now, the inconsistency has remained in Vim.
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102
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103
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104 MORE CHANGES
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105
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106 Like "dd" deletes a whole line, "cc" changes a whole line. It keeps the
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107 existing indent (leading white space) though.
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108
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109 Just like "d$" deletes until the end of the line, "c$" changes until the end
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110 of the line. It's like doing "d$" to delete the text and then "a" to start
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111 Insert mode and append new text.
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112
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113
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114 SHORTCUTS
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115
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116 Some operator-motion commands are used so often that they have been given a
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117 single letter command:
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118
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119 x stands for dl (delete character under the cursor)
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120 X stands for dh (delete character left of the cursor)
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121 D stands for d$ (delete to end of the line)
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122 C stands for c$ (change to end of the line)
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123 s stands for cl (change one character)
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124 S stands for cc (change a whole line)
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125
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126
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127 WHERE TO PUT THE COUNT
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128
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129 The commands "3dw" and "d3w" delete three words. If you want to get really
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130 picky about things, the first command, "3dw", deletes one word three times;
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131 the command "d3w" deletes three words once. This is a difference without a
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132 distinction. You can actually put in two counts, however. For example,
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133 "3d2w" deletes two words, repeated three times, for a total of six words.
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134
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135
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136 REPLACING WITH ONE CHARACTER
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137
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138 The "r" command is not an operator. It waits for you to type a character, and
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139 will replace the character under the cursor with it. You could do the same
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140 with "cl" or with the "s" command, but with "r" you don't have to press <Esc>
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141
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142 there is somerhing grong here ~
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143 rT rt rw
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144
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145 There is something wrong here ~
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146
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147 Using a count with "r" causes that many characters to be replaced with the
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148 same character. Example:
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149
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150 There is something wrong here ~
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151 5rx
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152
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153 There is something xxxxx here ~
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154
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155 To replace a character with a line break use "r<Enter>". This deletes one
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156 character and inserts a line break. Using a count here only applies to the
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157 number of characters deleted: "4r<Enter>" replaces four characters with one
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158 line break.
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159
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160 ==============================================================================
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161 *04.3* Repeating a change
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162
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163 The "." command is one of the most simple yet powerful commands in Vim. It
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164 repeats the last change. For instance, suppose you are editing an HTML file
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165 and want to delete all the <B> tags. You position the cursor on the first <
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166 and delete the <B> with the command "df>". You then go to the < of the next
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167 </B> and kill it using the "." command. The "." command executes the last
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168 change command (in this case, "df>"). To delete another tag, position the
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169 cursor on the < and use the "." command.
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170
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171 To <B>generate</B> a table of <B>contents ~
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172 f< find first < --->
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173 df> delete to > -->
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174 f< find next < --------->
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175 . repeat df> --->
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176 f< find next < ------------->
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177 . repeat df> -->
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178
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179 The "." command works for all changes you make, except for the "u" (undo),
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180 CTRL-R (redo) and commands that start with a colon (:).
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181
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182 Another example: You want to change the word "four" to "five". It appears
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183 several times in your text. You can do this quickly with this sequence of
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184 commands:
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185
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186 /four<Enter> find the first string "four"
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187 cwfive<Esc> change the word to "five"
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188 n find the next "four"
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189 . repeat the change to "five'
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190 n find the next "four"
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191 . repeat the change
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192 etc.
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193
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194 ==============================================================================
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195 *04.4* Visual mode
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196
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197 To delete simple items the operator-motion changes work quite well. But often
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198 it's not so easy to decide which command will move over the text you want to
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199 change. Then you can use Visual mode.
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200
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201 You start Visual mode by pressing "v". You move the cursor over the text you
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202 want to work on. While you do this, the text is highlighted. Finally type
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203 the operator command.
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204 For example, to delete from halfway one word to halfway another word:
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205
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206 This is an examination sample of visual mode ~
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207 ---------->
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208 velllld
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209
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210 This is an example of visual mode ~
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211
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212 When doing this you don't really have to count how many times you have to
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213 press "l" to end up in the right position. You can immediately see what text
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214 will be deleted when you press "d".
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215
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216 If at any time you decide you don't want to do anything with the highlighted
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217 text, just press <Esc> and Visual mode will stop without doing anything.
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218
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219
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220 SELECTING LINES
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221
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222 If you want to work on whole lines, use "V" to start Visual mode. You will
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223 see right away that the whole line is highlighted, without moving around.
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224 When you move left or right nothing changes. When you move up or down the
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225 selection is extended whole lines at a time.
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226 For example, select three lines with "Vjj":
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227
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228 +------------------------+
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229 | text more text |
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230 >> | more text more text | |
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231 selected lines >> | text text text | | Vjj
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232 >> | text more | V
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233 | more text more |
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234 +------------------------+
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235
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236
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237 SELECTING BLOCKS
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238
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239 If you want to work on a rectangular block of characters, use CTRL-V to start
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240 Visual mode. This is very useful when working on tables.
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241
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242 name Q1 Q2 Q3
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243 pierre 123 455 234
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244 john 0 90 39
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245 steve 392 63 334
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246
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247 To delete the middle "Q2" column, move the cursor to the "Q" of "Q2". Press
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248 CTRL-V to start blockwise Visual mode. Now move the cursor three lines down
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249 with "3j" and to the next word with "w". You can see the first character of
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250 the last column is included. To exclude it, use "h". Now press "d" and the
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251 middle column is gone.
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252
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253
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254 GOING TO THE OTHER SIDE
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255
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256 If you have selected some text in Visual mode, and discover that you need to
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257 change the other end of the selection, use the "o" command (Hint: o for other
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258 end). The cursor will go to the other end, and you can move the cursor to
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259 change where the selection starts. Pressing "o" again brings you back to the
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260 other end.
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261
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262 When using blockwise selection, you have four corners. "o" only takes you to
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263 one of the other corners, diagonally. Use "O" to move to the other corner in
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264 the same line.
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265
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266 Note that "o" and "O" in Visual mode work very differently from Normal mode,
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267 where they open a new line below or above the cursor.
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268
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269 ==============================================================================
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270 *04.5* Moving text
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271
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272 When you delete something with the "d", "x", or another command, the text is
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273 saved. You can paste it back by using the p command. (The Vim name for
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274 this is put).
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275 Take a look at how this works. First you will delete an entire line, by
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276 putting the cursor on the line you want to delete and typing "dd". Now you
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277 move the cursor to where you want to put the line and use the "p" (put)
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278 command. The line is inserted on the line below the cursor.
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279
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280 a line a line a line
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281 line 2 dd line 3 p line 3
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282 line 3 line 2
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283
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284 Because you deleted an entire line, the "p" command placed the text line below
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285 the cursor. If you delete part of a line (a word, for instance), the "p"
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286 command puts it just after the cursor.
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287
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288 Some more boring try text to out commands. ~
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289 ---->
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290 dw
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291
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292 Some more boring text to out commands. ~
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293 ------->
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294 welp
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295
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296 Some more boring text to try out commands. ~
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297
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298
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299 MORE ON PUTTING
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300
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301 The "P" command puts text like "p", but before the cursor. When you deleted a
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302 whole line with "dd", "P" will put it back above the cursor. When you deleted
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303 a word with "dw", "P" will put it back just before the cursor.
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304
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305 You can repeat putting as many times as you like. The same text will be used.
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306
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307 You can use a count with "p" and "P". The text will be repeated as many times
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308 as specified with the count. Thus "dd" and then "3p" puts three copies of the
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309 same deleted line.
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310
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311
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312 SWAPPING TWO CHARACTERS
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313
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314 Frequently when you are typing, your fingers get ahead of your brain (or the
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315 other way around?). The result is a typo such as "teh" for "the". Vim
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316 makes it easy to correct such problems. Just put the cursor on the e of "teh"
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317 and execute the command "xp". This works as follows: "x" deletes the
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318 character e and places it in a register. "p" puts the text after the cursor,
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319 which is after the h.
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320
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321 teh th the ~
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322 x p
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323
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324 ==============================================================================
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325 *04.6* Copying text
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326
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327 To copy text from one place to another, you could delete it, use "u" to undo
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328 the deletion and then "p" to put it somewhere else. There is an easier way:
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329 yanking. The "y" operator copies text into a register. Then a "p" command
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330 can be used to put it.
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331 Yanking is just a Vim name for copying. The "c" letter was already used
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332 for the change operator, and "y" was still available. Calling this
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333 operator "yank" made it easier to remember to use the "y" key.
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334
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335 Since "y" is an operator, you use "yw" to yank a word. A count is possible as
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336 usual. To yank two words use "y2w". Example:
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337
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338 let sqr = LongVariable * ~
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339 -------------->
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340 y2w
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341
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342 let sqr = LongVariable * ~
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343 p
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344
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345 let sqr = LongVariable * LongVariable ~
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346
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347 Notice that "yw" includes the white space after a word. If you don't want
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348 this, use "ye".
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349
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350 The "yy" command yanks a whole line, just like "dd" deletes a whole line.
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351 Unexpectedly, while "D" deletes from the cursor to the end of the line, "Y"
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352 works like "yy", it yanks the whole line. Watch out for this inconsistency!
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353 Use "y$" to yank to the end of the line.
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354
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355 a text line yy a text line a text line
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356 line 2 line 2 p line 2
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357 last line last line a text line
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358 last line
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359
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360 ==============================================================================
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361 *04.7* Using the clipboard
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362
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363 If you are using the GUI version of Vim (gvim), you can find the "Copy" item
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364 in the "Edit" menu. First select some text with Visual mode, then use the
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365 Edit/Copy menu. The selected text is now copied to the clipboard. You can
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366 paste the text in other programs. In Vim itself too.
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367
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368 If you have copied text to the clipboard in another application, you can paste
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369 it in Vim with the Edit/Paste menu. This works in Normal mode and Insert
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370 mode. In Visual mode the selected text is replaced with the pasted text.
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371
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372 The "Cut" menu item deletes the text before it's put on the clipboard. The
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373 "Copy", "Cut" and "Paste" items are also available in the popup menu (only
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374 when there is a popup menu, of course). If your Vim has a toolbar, you can
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375 also find these items there.
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376
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377 If you are not using the GUI, or if you don't like using a menu, you have to
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378 use another way. You use the normal "y" (yank) and "p" (put) commands, but
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379 prepend "* (double-quote star) before it. To copy a line to the clipboard: >
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380
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381 "*yy
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382
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383 To put text from the clipboard back into the text: >
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384
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385 "*p
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386
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387 This only works on versions of Vim that include clipboard support. More about
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388 the clipboard in section |09.3| and here: |clipboard|.
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389
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390 ==============================================================================
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391 *04.8* Text objects
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392
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393 If the cursor is in the middle of a word and you want to delete that word, you
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394 need to move back to its start before you can do "dw". There is a simpler way
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395 to do this: "daw".
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396
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397 this is some example text. ~
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398 daw
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399
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400 this is some text. ~
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401
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402 The "d" of "daw" is the delete operator. "aw" is a text object. Hint: "aw"
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403 stands for "A Word". Thus "daw" is "Delete A Word". To be precise, the white
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404 space after the word is also deleted (the white space before the word at the
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405 end of the line).
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406
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407 Using text objects is the third way to make changes in Vim. We already had
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408 operator-motion and Visual mode. Now we add operator-text object.
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409 It is very similar to operator-motion, but instead of operating on the text
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410 between the cursor position before and after a movement command, the text
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411 object is used as a whole. It doesn't matter where in the object the cursor
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412 was.
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413
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414 To change a whole sentence use "cis". Take this text:
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415
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416 Hello there. This ~
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417 is an example. Just ~
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418 some text. ~
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419
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420 Move to the start of the second line, on "is an". Now use "cis":
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421
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422 Hello there. Just ~
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423 some text. ~
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424
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425 The cursor is in between the blanks in the first line. Now you type the new
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426 sentence "Another line.":
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427
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428 Hello there. Another line. Just ~
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429 some text. ~
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430
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431 "cis" consists of the "c" (change) operator and the "is" text object. This
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432 stands for "Inner Sentence". There is also the "as" (a sentence) object. The
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433 difference is that "as" includes the white space after the sentence and "is"
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434 doesn't. If you would delete a sentence, you want to delete the white space
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435 at the same time, thus use "das". If you want to type new text the white
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436 space can remain, thus you use "cis".
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437
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438 You can also use text objects in Visual mode. It will include the text object
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439 in the Visual selection. Visual mode continues, thus you can do this several
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440 times. For example, start Visual mode with "v" and select a sentence with
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441 "as". Now you can repeat "as" to include more sentences. Finally you use an
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442 operator to do something with the selected sentences.
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443
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444 You can find a long list of text objects here: |text-objects|.
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445
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446 ==============================================================================
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447 *04.9* Replace mode
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448
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449 The "R" command causes Vim to enter replace mode. In this mode, each
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450 character you type replaces the one under the cursor. This continues until
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451 you type <Esc>.
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452 In this example you start Replace mode on the first "t" of "text":
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453
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454 This is text. ~
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455 Rinteresting.<Esc>
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456
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457 This is interesting. ~
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458
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459 You may have noticed that this command replaced 5 characters in the line with
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460 twelve others. The "R" command automatically extends the line if it runs out
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461 of characters to replace. It will not continue on the next line.
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462
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463 You can switch between Insert mode and Replace mode with the <Insert> key.
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464
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465 When you use <BS> (backspace) to make correction, you will notice that the
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466 old text is put back. Thus it works like an undo command for the last typed
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467 character.
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468
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469 ==============================================================================
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470 *04.10* Conclusion
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471
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472 The operators, movement commands and text objects give you the possibility to
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473 make lots of combinations. Now that you know how it works, you can use N
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474 operators with M movement commands to make N * M commands!
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475
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476 You can find a list of operators here: |operator|
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477
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478 For example, there are many other ways to delete pieces of text. Here are a
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479 few often used ones:
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480
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481 x delete character under the cursor (short for "dl")
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482 X delete character before the cursor (short for "dh")
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483 D delete from cursor to end of line (short for "d$")
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484 dw delete from cursor to next start of word
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485 db delete from cursor to previous start of word
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486 diw delete word under the cursor (excluding white space)
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487 daw delete word under the cursor (including white space)
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488 dG delete until the end of the file
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489 dgg delete until the start of the file
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490
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491 If you use "c" instead of "d" they become change commands. And with "y" you
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492 yank the text. And so forth.
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493
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494
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495 There are a few often used commands to make changes that didn't fit somewhere
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496 else:
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497
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498 ~ change case of the character under the cursor, and move the
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499 cursor to the next character. This is not an operator (unless
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500 'tildeop' is set), thus you can't use it with a motion
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39
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501 command. It does work in Visual mode and changes case for
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502 all the selected text then.
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503
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504 I Start Insert mode after moving the cursor to the first
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505 non-blank in the line.
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506
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507 A Start Insert mode after moving the cursor to the end of the
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508 line.
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509
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510 ==============================================================================
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511
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512 Next chapter: |usr_05.txt| Set your settings
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513
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514 Copyright: see |manual-copyright| vim:tw=78:ts=8:ft=help:norl:
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